Re: Hrana Saga Hrings 5 part 2 -- Rob's Translation

This one definitely had some challenging bits.

> En hina tvo tóku þeir, ok hét Galti þeim fé, ef þeir
> vísuðu þeim trúliga leið til Lundarbrekku, en þrælarnir
> lofuðu því, ok lét Galti annan þeirra fara undan ok
> njósna, hvort Hrani væri þar.

> But/and they caught the two, and Galti promised them
> money, if they faithfully showed them the way to
> Lundarbrekku, and the thralls promised it, and Galti had
> the second of them excuse himself and spy, if (?) Hrani
> were there.

> But they took (ie took into thralldom) the-other two, and
> ‘Hog’ promised them money, if they showed them faithfully
> (the) way to Lundarbrekka (Grove’s-slope), but (and)
> the-thralls promised that, and ‘Hog’ caused one-of-the-two
> of them (annarr, Z1) to go away and to spy, whether
> (hvárt) Hrani was there.

And they seized the two [i.e., the two surviving servants],
and Galti promised them money if they faithfully showed them
the way to Lundarbrekka, and the thralls promised that, and
Galti had one of them to go ahead and spy whether Hrani was
there.

> Þrællinn fór ok varð varr við, at Hrani var eigi heima.

> The thrall went and learned that Hrani was not at home.

> The-thrall went and became aware with (that), that Hrani
> was not at home.

The thrall went and became aware that Hrani was not at home.

> Hafði hann verit með Helga krók um tíma.

> He had been with Helgi "Hook" a while.

> He had been (stayed) with Helgi ‘Hook’ for a while.

He had been with Helgi krók for a while.

> Lét nú þrællinn Galta vita þetta, ok ríða þeir nú leiðar
> sinnar níu saman, ok vísuðu þrælarnir honum veg allt at
> Skjálfandafljóti ok yfir þat á Hrafnabjörgum.

> The thrall now let Galti know this, and they, nine
> together, now ride through brush and forest, and the
> thralls showed him all at Skjalfandafljot
> (Trembling-river) and over it at Hrafnabjorgum
> (Raven's-provisions). (Z. ríða 1)

> The-thrall caused now Galti to know this, and they ride
> now their-ways nine together, and the-thralls showed him
> (the) way completely to Skjálfandafljót (Shaking-River)
> and over that to Hrafnabjörg (Ravens’-Cliffs, see –bjarg,
> Z2).

The thrall now let Galti know this, and they now ride their
way, nine together, and the thralls showed him the way all
the way to Skjálfandafljót and across that to Hrafnabjörg.

<Leiðar> is genitive singular; Baetke notes that both
accusative <leið sinn> and genitive <leiðar sinnar> can be
used in this construction.

> Ríða þeir fram Króksdal, þar til þeir litu, hvar
> viðarhlöss mörg vóru.

> They ride in front of Kroksdale, thereto they saw where
> (there) was much load of wood.

> They ride along (?) Króksdalr (Crook/Hook’s-Dale), until
> they saw, where many loads-of-wood were.

They ride forward along Króksdal until they saw where there
were many loads of wood.

> Þar sjá þeir ok þrjá menn.

> They also saw three men there.

> There they see also three persons (men).

There they also see three men.

> Einn þeirra leizt þeim vaskligr.

> One of them seemed to them of brave or gallant bearing.

> One of them seemed to them of-gallant-bearing.

One of them seemed to them of gallant bearing.

> Hann gengr til Hróalds, heilsar honum ok spyrr at nafni,
> en Galti sagði it sanna ok spyrr, hvat hann heiti.

> He goes to Hroaldr, greets him and asks him his name, and
> Galti said (it?) truely and asks what he was named. (Z.
> spyrja 3)

> He walks towards Hróaldr, greets him and asks for (his)
> name), but (and) ‘Hog’ said that (MnI spelling of hitt)
> truly and asks, what he was-called.

He walks towards Hróald, greets him, and asks his name, and
Galti the truth and asks what he is called.

I originally read <it sanna> as the neuter article and the
weak declension neuter accusative, matching the neuter noun
<nafn>. However, the same collocation occurs a few
sentences later in a context that lacks a neuter antecedent,
so I conclude that it’s simply ‘the truth’, with the
adjective functioning as an abstract noun. <Heiti> is 3rd
sing. pres. subj.

> En maðr sá, er fyrir var, kvaðst Hrani heita ok vera sonr
> Egils á Lundarbrekku.

> And (the) man said, which previously was, said for himself
> (he is) named Hranni and is Egil from Lundarbrek's son.

> But (And) that person (man), who was in-front (ie to the
> fore), declared-of-himself to-be-called Hrani and to be
> (the) son of Egill in Lundarbrekka (Grove’s-slope).

And the man who was at the front said that he was called
Hrani and was the son of Egil at Lundarbrekka.

> Galti mælti: "Vel berr nú í veiði, at vit hittumst hér, ok
> er ek bróðir Sigfúsar, er þú drapst í fyrra sumar, ok kom
> ek nú at hefna hans á þér.

> Galti said: "(game) now falls to my lot, that we met here,
> and it is I, Sigfusar's brother, whom you killed last
> summer, and I now came to take vengeance on you for him.
> (Z. bera II 2 - veiði (acc.) berr í hendr e-m, game falls
> to one’s lot)

> ‘Hog’ spoke: “(It) happens well (bera, Z.ii.3) now in
> (the) hunting (veiðr) (ie my quest has not been in vain),
> that we-two meet-each-other here, and I am (the) brother
> of Sigfúss, whom you killed in the summer before last, and
> I came now to avenge him on you.

Galti said: ‘It goes well now with the hunting, since we
meet here, and I am Sigfús’s brother, whom you killed the
summer before last, and I come now to avenge him on you.

The conjunction <at> can also mean ‘because, since’.

> Hefi ek nú drepit Gauta á Gautlandi ok einn þræl hans, en
> tveir fylgja mér til þín hingat, ok muntu nú fá sömu laun
> sem hann."

> I have now killed Gauti in Gautland and one of his
> thralls, and two lead me here to you, and you will now get
> the same payback as he."

> I have now slain Gauti in Gautland and one thrall of his,
> but (and) two guide me to you hither, and you-will now get
> (the) same reward as he.”

I have now killed Gauti of Götaland and one of his thralls,
and two guide me hither to you, and you will now get the
same reward as he.

> Hrani svarar: "Eftir áttu at afgreiða mér þau, ok þessliga
> lízt mér þú sjálfr sem feigð kalli at þér, þar þú hefir
> mik heim sóttan í þeim hug, ok muntu segja mér viðskipti
> ykkar Gauta, áðr þú leggr mik at velli."

> Hrani answers: "After you deserved to dispatch me (??),
> and on this wise it seems to me you yourself as a sign of
> death a shout (??) at you, when you have pursued me home
> in the temper (??), and you will tell me your hostile
> dealings to Gauti, before you kill me." (Z. völlr 1)

> Hrani answers: “(It is) according to (eptir, Z.i.4) family
> (átt ?) that they compensate (reward) me, and on-this-wise
> you yourself appear to me like a foreboding-of-death calls
> to you, where you have sought me at home in that
> foreboding, and you will tell me (the) dealings (quarrels)
> of you-two (you and) Gauti, before you lay me to earth (ie
> kill me).”

Hrani replies: ‘After they were under obligation to serve
me, and thus you yourself seem to me as if approaching death
calls to you, seeing that you have sought me at home in that
mood, and you will tell me the hostile dealings of you and
Gauti before you kill me [‘lay me to the ground’].

I am taking <þau> as the subject of <áttu> (from <eiga>);
the only thing that slightly disturbs me about this reading
is that I don’t see why the neuter pronoun would be used.
I’m also reading <þar> as elliptical for <þar sem>. It’s
worth mentioning that another version makes it:

eftir áttu at leiða mik þann veg, ok þesslega lízt mér þú
sjálfr sem feigð kalli at þér, er þú hefir mik heimsóttan
í þessum hug, ok muntu segja mér af viðskiftum ykkar Gauta
áðrenn þú leggr mik at velli.

This tends to support my reading of <þar> but gives a
completely different sense to the first part: ‘after they
were obliged to lead me that way’. I don’t know whether
this reflects different manuscript variants, or whether one
of the two versions is an attempt to make sense of a
difficult passage. It does appear that <afgreiða> is a
relatively modern word, but as we’ve seen, in this saga
that’s not necessarily a problem.

> Galti segir frá it sanna þar um ok mælti síðan: "Sé nú
> framar dugr í þér en merbikkju roskinni, þá hefndu hans
> nú."

> Galti tells the (?) truth about that and then said: "I now
> know (or "see"?) fully doughtiness in you than a mature
> mare-bitch (?), then his revenge now." (???)

> ‘Hog’ says about that truly about that and spoke
> after-that: “Be (guess: some form of imperative of vera?)
> now more (greater, framarr, comparative) strength-of-body
> (or soul) in you than in a full-grown bitch-of-a-mare (?),
> receive (guess: some form of imperative of þiggja?) his
> vengeance now.”

Galti says tells the truth about it and then said: ‘[If
there] be now more doughtiness in you than [in] an old nag,
then avenge him now.’

I take <Sé> to be subjunctive. De Vries s.v. <merr> glosses
<merbikkja> 'schindmähre', which is pejorative, 'nag'.
<Roskinn> is now 'middle-aged, elderly', and it seems to me
that this sense suits the context perfectly.

The other version that I have replaces <frá> with <þá>,
which makes only a very minor difference.

> Hrani mælti: "Vit skulum báðir reyna með okkr, en menn
> vorir sitji sjá, því ójafnt er liðit."

> Hrani said: "We should both make a trial of each other,
> and/but our men sit (?) to see, that the sides are
> unequal." (Z. reyna 1)

> Hrani spoke: We-two shall both make-trial between us-two,
> but (and) our men should-sit to see, because unequal is
> the-(size of our) troops.”

Hrani said: ‘We two shall both make trial of each other, and
our men should just watch, for the hosts are [‘host is’]
unequal.’

> Galti svarar: "Njóta mun ek liðs míns, ok bleyðist þú
> mjök, ok finnst mér sem þú sért nú feigr"

> Galti answers: "I will have the benefit of my people, and
> you lost much courage, and I am pleased as you are now
> fated to die."

> ‘Hog’ answers:”I will have-the-use of my troops, and you
> much lose-courage, and (it) seems to me like you are now
> fey (fated-to die).”

Galti replies: ‘I will have the benefit of my host, and you
are greatly losing heart, and it seems to me that you are
now fey [i.e., fated to die].’

Rob: For this sense of <finnask> see <finna> CV III near the
end, <e-m finnsk> 'one thinks, it seems to one'.

> "Svo ferr sem auðnar," segir Hrani.

> "So it went as luck decides," says Hrani. (Z. auðna)

> “(It) goes thus as is-fated,” says Hrani.

‘[It] goes as fate determines,’ says Hrani.

> "Lízt mér þú duglauss, þar þú vill níðast á mér, ok mun ek
> eigi undan renna."

> "It seems to me you (are) good for nothing, there you want
> to act basely to me, and I will not run away."

> “You seem to me good-for-nothing, where you want
> behave-in-a-dastardly-way towards me, and I will not run
> away.”

‘You seem to me good for nothing, seeing that you want to
behave in a dastardly way towards me, and I will not run
away.’

Here again it makes most sense to me to interpret <þar> as
elliptical for <þar sem>.

Brian